10 USC 601 - Positions of importance and responsibility: generals and lieutenant generals; admirals and vice admirals

Collapse to view only § 601. Positions of importance and responsibility: generals and lieutenant generals; admirals and vice admirals

§ 601. Positions of importance and responsibility: generals and lieutenant generals; admirals and vice admirals
§ 602. Flexibility in determining terms of appointment for certain senior officer positions
§ 603. Appointments in time of war or national emergency
§ 604. Senior joint officer positions: recommendations to the Secretary of Defense
§ 605. Promotion to certain grades for officers with critical skills: colonel, lieutenant colonel, major, captain; captain, commander, lieutenant commander, lieutenant

§ 601. Positions of importance and responsibility: generals and lieutenant generals; admirals and vice admirals

(a) The President may designate positions of importance and responsibility to carry the grade of general or admiral or lieutenant general or vice admiral. The President may assign to any such position an officer of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force who is serving on active duty in any grade above colonel or, in the case of an officer of the Navy, any grade above captain. An officer assigned to any such position has the grade specified for that position if he is appointed to that grade by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Except as provided in subsection (b), the appointment of an officer to a grade under this section for service in a position of importance and responsibility ends on the date of the termination of the assignment of the officer to that position.

(b) An officer who is appointed to the grade of general, admiral, lieutenant general, or vice admiral for service in a position designated under subsection (a) or by law to carry that grade shall continue to hold that grade—

(1) while serving in that position;

(2) while under orders transferring him to another position designated under subsection (a) or by law to carry one of those grades, beginning on the day his assignment to the first position is terminated and ending on the day before the day on which he assumes the second position;

(3) while hospitalized, beginning on the day of the hospitalization and ending on the day he is discharged from the hospital, but not for more than 180 days;

(4) at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense, while the officer is awaiting orders after being relieved from the position designated under subsection (a) or by law to carry one of those grades, but not for more than 60 days beginning on the day the officer is relieved from the position, unless, during such period, the officer is placed under orders to another position designated under subsection (a) or by law to carry one of those grades, in which case paragraph (2) will also apply to the officer; and

(5) while awaiting retirement, beginning on the day he is relieved from the position designated under subsection (a) or by law to carry one of those grades and ending on the day before his retirement, but—

(A) subject to subparagraph (B), not for more than 60 days; and

(B) with respect to an officer awaiting retirement following not less than one year of consecutive deployment outside of the United States to a combat zone (as defined in section 112(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) or in support of a contingency operation, not for more than 90 days.

(c)

(1) An appointment of an officer under subsection (a) does not vacate the permanent grade held by the officer.

(2) An officer serving in a grade above major general or rear admiral who holds the permanent grade of brigadier general or rear admiral (lower half) shall be considered for promotion to the permanent grade of major general or rear admiral, as appropriate, as if he were serving in his permanent grade.

(d)

(1) When an officer is recommended to the President for an initial appointment to the grade of lieutenant general or vice admiral, or for an initial appointment to the grade of general or admiral, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff shall submit to the Secretary of Defense the Chairman’s evaluation of the performance of that officer as a member of the Joint Staff and in other joint duty assignments. The Secretary of Defense shall submit the Chairman’s evaluation to the President at the same time the recommendation for the appointment is submitted to the President.

(2) Whenever a vacancy occurs in a position within the Department of Defense that the President has designated as a position of importance and responsibility to carry the grade of general or admiral or lieutenant general or vice admiral or in an office that is designated by law to carry such a grade, the Secretary of Defense shall inform the President of the qualifications needed by an officer serving in that position or office to carry out effectively the duties and responsibilities of that position or office.

(e) Prior to making a recommendation to the Secretary of Defense for the nomination of an officer for appointment to a position of importance and responsibility under this section, which appointment would result in the initial appointment of the officer concerned in the grade of lieutenant general or general in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force or vice admiral or admiral in the Navy, the Secretary concerned shall consider all officers determined to be among the best qualified for such position.

(Added Pub. L. 96–513, title I, § 105, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2849; amended Pub. L. 97–86, title IV, § 405(b)(1), Dec. 1, 1981, 95 Stat. 1105; Pub. L. 98–525, title V, § 523, Oct. 19, 1984, 98 Stat. 2523; Pub. L. 99–145, title V, § 514(b)(1), Nov. 8, 1985, 99 Stat. 628; Pub. L. 99–433, title IV, § 403, Oct. 1, 1986, 100 Stat. 1031; Pub. L. 102–190, div. A, title V, § 502(a), Dec. 5, 1991, 105 Stat. 1354; Pub. L. 104–106, div. A, title IV, § 403(c), Feb. 10, 1996, 110 Stat. 287; Pub. L. 110–181, div. A, title V, § 501(a), Jan. 28, 2008, 122 Stat. 94; Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title V, § 551(b)(1), title IX, § 924(b)(3)(C), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 3630, 3821; Pub. L. 117–263, div. A, title V, § 505, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 2558; Pub. L. 118–31, div. A, title XVII, § 1741(a)(4), Dec. 22, 2023, 137 Stat. 679.)

§ 602. Flexibility in determining terms of appointment for certain senior officer positions

The Secretary of Defense may extend or reduce the duration of an appointment made under section 152, 154, 7033, 8033, 8043, 9033, or 9082 of this title by up to six months if the Secretary determines that such an extension or reduction is necessary either in the interests of national defense, or to ensure an appropriate staggering of terms of senior military leadership.

(Added Pub. L. 118–31, div. A, title V, § 504(a), Dec. 22, 2023, 137 Stat. 241.)

§ 603. Appointments in time of war or national emergency

(a) In time of war, or of national emergency declared by the Congress or the President after November 30, 1980, the President may appoint any qualified person (whether or not already a member of the armed forces) to any officer grade in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force, except that appointments under this section may not be made in grades above major general or rear admiral. Appointments under this section shall be made by the President alone, except that an appointment in the grade warrant officer, W–1, shall be made by warrant by the Secretary concerned.

(b) Any appointment under this section is a temporary appointment and may be vacated by the President at any time.

(c)

(1) Any person receiving an original appointment under this section is entitled to service credit as authorized under section 533 of this title.

(2) An appointment under this section of a person who is not on active duty becomes effective when that person begins active duty under that appointment.

(d) An appointment under this section does not change the permanent status of a member of the armed forces so appointed. A member who is appointed under this section shall not incur any reduction in the pay and allowances to which the member was entitled, by virtue of his permanent status, at the time of his appointment under this section.

(e)

(1) An officer who receives an appointment to a higher grade under this section is considered to have accepted such appointment on the date of the order announcing the appointment unless he expressly declines the appointment.

(2) An officer who has served continuously since he subscribed to the oath of office prescribed in section 3331 of title 5 is not required to take a new oath upon appointment to a higher grade under this section.

(f) Unless sooner terminated, an appointment under this section terminates on the earliest of the following:

(1) The second anniversary of the appointment.

(2) The end of the six-month period beginning on the last day of the war or national emergency during which the appointment was made.

(3) The date the person appointed is released from active duty.

(Added Pub. L. 96–513, title I, § 105, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2850; amended Pub. L. 101–189, div. A, title VI, § 653(a)(2), Nov. 29, 1989, 103 Stat. 1462; Pub. L. 102–190, div. A, title XI, § 1113(b), (d)(1)(A), Dec. 5, 1991, 105 Stat. 1502;

§ 604. Senior joint officer positions: recommendations to the Secretary of Defense

(a)Joint 4-Star Officer Positions.—

(1) Whenever a vacancy occurs, or is anticipated to occur, in a position specified in subsection (b)—

(A) the Secretary of Defense shall require the Secretary of the Army to submit the name of at least one Army officer, the Secretary of the Navy to submit the name of at least one Navy officer and the name of at least one Marine Corps officer, and the Secretary of the Air Force to submit the name of at least one Air Force officer and the name of at least one Space Force officer for consideration by the Secretary for recommendation to the President for appointment to that position; and

(B) the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff may submit to the Secretary of Defense the name of one or more officers (in addition to the officers whose names are submitted pursuant to subparagraph (A)) for consideration by the Secretary for recommendation to the President for appointment to that position.

(2) Whenever the Secretaries of the military departments are required to submit the names of officers under paragraph (1)(A), the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff shall submit to the Secretary of Defense the Chairman’s evaluation of the performance of each officer whose name is submitted under that paragraph (and of any officer whose name the Chairman submits to the Secretary under paragraph (1)(B) for consideration for the same vacancy). The Chairman’s evaluation shall primarily consider the performance of the officer as a member of the Joint Staff and in other joint duty assignments, but may include consideration of other aspects of the officer’s performance as the Chairman considers appropriate.

(b)Covered Positions.—Subsection (a) applies to the following positions:

(1) Commander of a combatant command.

(2) Commander, United States Forces, Korea.

(Added Pub. L. 103–337, div. A, title IV, § 405(c)(1), Oct. 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 2745; amended Pub. L. 104–201, div. A, title IV, § 404(a), Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2506; Pub. L. 106–65, div. A, title V, § 509(a), Oct. 5, 1999, 113 Stat. 592; Pub. L. 107–314, div. A, title IV, § 405(a), Dec. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 2526; Pub. L. 108–136, div. A, title V, § 504(a), Nov. 24, 2003, 117 Stat. 1456; Pub. L. 114–328, div. A, title V, § 502(e), Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2102; Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title IX, § 924(b)(15), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 3823.)

§ 605. Promotion to certain grades for officers with critical skills: colonel, lieutenant colonel, major, captain; captain, commander, lieutenant commander, lieutenant

(a)In General.—An officer in the grade of first lieutenant, captain, major, or lieutenant colonel in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force, or lieutenant (junior grade), lieutenant, lieutenant commander, or commander in the Navy, who is described in subsection (b) may be temporarily promoted to the grade of captain, major, lieutenant colonel, or colonel in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force, or lieutenant, lieutenant commander, commander, or captain in the Navy, as applicable, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the military department concerned. Appointments under this section shall be made by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(b)Covered Officers.—An officer described in this subsection is any officer in a grade specified in subsection (a) who—

(1) has a skill in which the armed force concerned has a critical shortage of personnel (as determined by the Secretary of the military department concerned); and

(2) is serving in a position (as determined by the Secretary of the military department concerned) that—

(A) is designated to be held by a captain, major, lieutenant colonel, or colonel in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force, or lieutenant, lieutenant commander, commander, or captain in the Navy, as applicable; and

(B) requires that an officer serving in such position have the skill possessed by such officer.

(c)Preservation of Position and Status of Officers Appointed.—An appointment under this section does not change the position on the active-duty list or the permanent, probationary, or acting status of the officer so appointed, prejudice the officer in regard to other promotions or appointments, or abridge the rights or benefits of the officer.

(d)Board Recommendation Required.—A temporary promotion under this section may be made only upon the recommendation of a board of officers convened by the Secretary of the military department concerned for the purpose of recommending officers for such promotions.

(e)Acceptance and Effective Date of Appointment.—Each appointment under this section, unless expressly declined, is, without formal acceptance, regarded as accepted on the date such appointment is made, and a member so appointed is entitled to the pay and allowances of the grade of the temporary promotion under this section from the date the appointment is made.

(f)Termination of Appointment.—Unless sooner terminated, an appointment under this section terminates—

(1) on the date the officer who received the appointment is promoted to the permanent grade of captain, major, lieutenant colonel, or colonel in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force, or lieutenant, lieutenant commander, commander, or captain in the Navy; or

(2) on the date the officer is detached from a position described in subsection (b)(2), unless the officer is on a promotion list to the permanent grade of captain, major, lieutenant colonel, or colonel in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force, or lieutenant, lieutenant commander, commander, or captain in the Navy, in which case the appointment terminates on the date the officer is promoted to that grade.

(g)Limitation on Number of Eligible Positions.—An appointment under this section may only be made for service in a position designated by the Secretary of the military department concerned for the purposes of this section. The number of positions so designated may not exceed the following:

(1) In the case of the Army—

(A) as captain, 120;

(B) as major, 350;

(D) as colonel, 100.

(2) In the case of the Air Force—

(A) as captain 95;

(B) as major, 305;

(D) as colonel, 75.

(3) In the case of the Space Force—

(A) as captain, 5;

(B) as major, 20;

(D) as colonel, 5.

(4) In the case of the Marine Corps—

(A) as captain, 50;

(B) as major, 175;

(D) as colonel, 50.

(5) In the case of the Navy—

(A) as lieutenant, 100;

(B) as lieutenant commander, 425;

(D) as captain, 80.

(Added Pub. L. 115–232, div. A, title V, § 503(a)(1), Aug. 13, 2018, 132 Stat. 1740; amended Pub. L. 118–31, div. A, title V, § 505, title XVII, § 1716(d), Dec. 22, 2023, 137 Stat. 241, 653.)